Compliance · OWBPA / ADEA

OWBPA compliance and the decisional unit disclosure

Any RIF that includes employees aged 40 or over triggers specific OWBPA obligations. A defective disclosure or missed deadline voids the waiver — exposing the employer to age discrimination claims regardless of the severance paid.

What the law requires

The Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (1990) amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act to govern how employers may obtain a valid waiver of ADEA claims from employees aged 40 or older. For a waiver to be enforceable, the employer must meet specific procedural requirements — any failure can void the release entirely.

In a group layoff, the employer must provide a decisional unit disclosure: a written list of the job titles and ages of all employees in the affected group, both those selected for termination and those not selected. This document must be provided at the time the severance agreement is presented.

Employees must have at least 45 days to consider the agreement in a group layoff (21 days for individual terminations). After signing, there is a mandatory 7-day revocation period during which the employee may rescind. The earliest the agreement can become effective is 52 days from disclosure (45 + 7).

The waiver must be in writing, reference the ADEA specifically, not waive future claims, and be supported by consideration beyond what the employee is already entitled to. Employers cannot simply add OWBPA language to an existing agreement — the procedural requirements must be met independently.

Key requirements

Triggers when

Two or more selected employees are aged 40+

Consideration period

45 days (group) / 21 days (individual)

Revocation period

7 days after signing

Earliest effective date

52 days from disclosure

Failure consequence

Waiver void — ADEA claims reinstated

How People Plan handles it

Triggered automatically. No manual configuration required.

Automatic age detection and workflow activation

The platform calculates exact ages from birth dates with UTC accuracy, including edge cases around birthdays. When two or more selected employees are aged 40 or over, it sets an OWBPA requirement flag and activates the full disclosure and legal text workflow automatically. It also surfaces a specific warning when every selected employee is 40 or over — a pattern that warrants additional scrutiny.

Four decisional unit strategies

You select how to define the decisional unit: by department, by location, by job family, or a custom grouping. The system populates the disclosure grid from your employee roster accordingly. Crucially, it includes employees who left the organisation before execution — a legal requirement that manual processes frequently miss.

Exact deadline calculation

The platform calculates every required date as an exact calendar date from the disclosure date: the 45-day group consideration period, the 7-day revocation window that follows, and the 52-day earliest effective date (45 + 7). The 21-day individual consideration period is also configurable where applicable. All three deadlines are surfaced clearly in the workflow.

Statutory language included

All required ADEA and OWBPA waiver language is included in generated severance documents. The disclosure grid is formatted in the standard OWBPA order — sorted by job title and age — matching the format employment counsel and the EEOC expect.

What the platform produces

Decisional unit disclosure

A properly formatted grid of all affected-group job titles and ages — selected and not selected — sorted in OWBPA-standard order, including departed employees.

Exact deadline calendar

The 45-day window, 7-day revocation period, and 52-day earliest effective date calculated as specific calendar dates from your disclosure date.

Compliant severance documents

Per-employee severance letters with all required ADEA and OWBPA waiver language and calculated signature deadlines. Designed for attorney review before distribution.

People Plan is a compliance tool, not a law firm. OWBPA requirements are fact-specific and courts apply them strictly. Always have qualified employment counsel review decisional unit disclosures, waiver language, and consideration periods before distributing severance agreements.

Also covered:

WARN Act Adverse Impact Severance

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